Minneapolis' Influential Modernist "Park Plaza" Saved from Demolition

The Cultural Landscape Foundation (TCLF) and the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota (PAM) have reached a settlement with the City of Minneapolis to preserve and rehabilitate Peavey Plaza, ending a lawsuit brought by the groups to prevent demolition.

1 minute read

October 8, 2013, 2:00 PM PDT

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


The threat of demolition has been lifted from M. Paul Friedberg's influential Peavey Plaza, one of the small fraction of landscape architecture sites to be listed on the National Register of Historic Places. 

"Last year, against objections from a coalition of preservationists led by TCLF, Peavey Plaza was slated to be razed," writes Chris Bentley. "A rift had developed one year prior, after city-led redevelopment plans threatened key elements of the original design, prompting Friedberg and TCLF president Charles Birnbaum to split from the team tasked with bringing the aging modernist plaza up to contemporary standards."

According to the agreement approved by the Minneapolis City Council last week, "PAM, TCLF and the City agree to work together on a new plan that maintains Peavey’s historic character while rehabilitating it to address access, maintenance, and programming issues," says a TCLF press release

Friday, October 4, 2013 in The Architect's Newspaper Blog

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